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Gillian Darmody in Season 2
Gillian Darmody remains a major character in the second season. This article details their actions in each episode of the season. Gimcrack & Bunkum Jimmy Darmody meets with The Commodore's backers at Jackson Parkhurst's home. When Parkhurst thinks Jimmy is being disrespectful he whacks him on the head with his cane causing a laceration. Back at his home Jimmy has his cut cleaned by Gillian. He worries about the loss of his stock and storage warehouse in an explosion and his failure to deliver a promised shipment to Manny Horvitz in Philadelphia. Gillian urges Jimmy to show that he will not be disrespected. She refuses to be dismissed until Jimmy confirms that he knows what he needs to do. She tells him the story of John D. Rockefeller’s early years and his fortune. Later, Jimmy has Parkhurst scalped. The Age of Reason At Commodore Louis Kaestner’s home his long-time lawyer Leander Cephas Whitlock reads aloud a quotation from Alexander The Great “I am indebted to my father for living, but to my teacher for living well”. His audience consists of Jimmy, Gillian and The Commodore. Jimmy recognises the quote and gives the source. Whitlock points out that Alexander was the son of a king and hands the book to Jimmy. Gillian jokes that Jimmy is the same as Alexander and says that The Commodore is proud of Jimmy. Jimmy asks about his own teacher; Whitlock realises he means Nucky and says that Nucky is a great strategist. Whitlock is envious of Nucky’s ploy with the Attorney General and admits that he would not have thought of it. The Commodore tries to speak but is still unable to make himself understood after his stroke. Whitlock tells The Commodore that he should give Nucky due respect. Gillian tries to calm The Commodore, telling him that it is time for his medicine. Jimmy calls over Langston, The Commodore’s butler, and Langston wheels The Commodore out of the room. Whitlock calls The Commodore a tough old bird and Jimmy jokes that he thought Whitlock was referring to Gillian. Whitlock praises Jimmy’s fortitude and Jimmy says he has survived worse situations. Whitlock points out that Jimmy was receiving orders during World War I rather than being in a position of command. Whitlock asks if the scalping of Jackson Parkhurst was necessary and Jimmy denies involvement. Whitlock admits that there was little sympathy for Parkhurst but suspects that Jimmy has alienated powerful allies. Gillian tells Whitlock that they are offended by his implication. Whitlock asks to speak to Jimmy alone and Jimmy complies by asking his mother to leave. She tells Jimmy that she knows he will confide in her later. Jimmy flinches as Gillian kisses him on the lips. Embarrassed, Jimmy catches a look from Whitlock and explains away the kiss as something his mother does. Peg of Old Jimmy Darmody hosts a meeting of his younger allies at The Commodore’s house. Charlie Luciano, Meyer Lansky, Al Capone, Mickey Doyle and Richard Harrow are present. Sheriff Eli Thompson is running late. With the meeting in progress Gillian enters and announces Eli’s arrival. Eli complains that they have begun without him and Doyle jokes that his lateness is due to losing the keys to the jail. Jimmy introduces Eli to Capone, Luciano and Lansky. Luciano angrily recalls his earlier meetings with Eli when he was roughly questioned about a robbery. Gillian makes her exit, calling herself a geisha. The group pressure Jimmy into agreeing to assassinate Nucky Thompson. Afterwards Jimmy sits while Gillian dresses for the evening. She tells him to close his eyes and he asks when she became modest. She blames the unflattering lighting and says men do not have to worry about their appearance. Donning a dress she asks for Jimmy’s opinion. He wonders why she is dressing up and she tells him she is meeting colleagues from the Cafe Beaux-Arts and that she is worried they will notice her wrinkles. Jimmy says she is not aging and she smiles and reminisces about summers on the beach. Jimmy recalls being mistaken for her brother and she tells him they belong where they are. Jimmy worries about the assassination planned for the next day. Gillian says killing Nucky will announce Jimmy to the world. He considers calling it off and she tells him that while his friends are delightful, colourful and ambitious he should never appear indecisive to them. Jimmy wonders his image is reason enough for Nucky to die and bemoans the deviation from what they originally discussed. Gillian says they were not being honest with one another then. Jimmy tells her he does not want to do this and she tells him that with the order given the rest is book-keeping and beneath his interest. She whispers “make me proud of you” in his ear and he flinches as she brushes his cheek. Lucky Luciano washes his face in a hotel bathroom. Gillian, her dress torn from one shoulder, approaches him and he tells her that them being together is a bad idea. She asks if he does not trust her and recalling that she set him up in the past he angrily asks if she is joking. She suggests that she should leave and as she turns to the door he grabs her, spins her around and kisses her. He says he is going to whip her through the mud like a racehorse and they kiss passionately. Two Boats and a Lifeguard Jimmy talks with Gillian in The Commodore’s lounge. He wonders if Nucky Thompson’s survival will be blamed on him and she says that while success has many fathers failure is an orphan. The butler, Langston, shows in Mickey Doyle and Manny Horvitz and Jimmy and Gillian stand to greet them. Manny calls Jimmy “boychick” and then assumes that Gillian is Jimmy’s wife. Gillian corrects him and he admires her youthful appearance. She says that Jimmy warned her of Manny’s charm and Manny says that Jimmy is a good boy. Gillian says that she will leave them to their business and exits. Gillian, Jimmy, The Commodore and Leander Cephas Whitlock are in conference at The Commodore’s home. Langston shows in Nucky and Owen. Nucky thanks them for seeing him. Gillian offers a drink and he declines with awkward formality. He says that he is acutely aware of the finite nature of life following his father’s death and that he is going to end their difficulties. The Commodore offers condolences, his speech still marred by weakness after his stroke, and Whitlock joins him. Nucky says his brush with his own mortality has also provoked thinking. He says that his love for Margaret and her children is more important than his power and claims that he plans to retire. He believes that he will have adequate funds after selling property and plans to do so once his legal problems are resolved. Nucky addresses The Commodore telling him that he built Atlantic City and can now have it back. Nucky tells Jimmy that Mayor Bader is aware of his decision and will be cooperative. Whitlock wonders if Nucky will step down as Atlantic County Treasurer and Nucky confirms that he will. He gives his word that he will not stand in their way and offers them the chance to chose his successor. He turns and begins to walk out of the room and Jimmy stops him by calling his name. Jimmy pauses, swallows and then wishes Nucky luck. Nucky reciprocates and exits. Georgia Peaches Jimmy's rival Manny Horvitz comes to Jimmy Darmody's home and murders Angela and her lover Louise while Gillian is looking after Tommy on July 25, 1921. Jimmy is on his way to Princeton to sell liquor at the time. Under God's Power She Flourishes In flashbacks to 1916 Gillian visits Jimmy at college in Princeton. Jimmy stops to watch a train pass the window as he unpacks Gillian’s suitcase in her boarding room. She sits on the bed smoking as he works. He asks her what is wrong and she says that she wanted to see him, afraid that he is changing fast. He denies changing and she reasserts that he is; revealing that she heard shocking rumours from Mrs Krakower when she visited his dormitory. Jimmy calls Krakower a busybody and Gillian says that she reported women calling in the night. Jimmy points out that it was Gillian that called him. Gillian says that he has been seen kissing underfed waitresses. He tells her that it was Angela and Gillian wonders if they have done more. Jimmy tells Gillian that Angela draws and Gillian says that a chimney draws. Jimmy asks after Gillian’s latest beau, calling him Mr Gunterson. She corrects him, saying that it was Arthur Henderson, and that he revealed that he was married and told her that he thought “girls like her could tell.” Jimmy says that Henderson did not deserve her and Gillian’s says that she got her pleasures and that is all that matters. Gillian asks if he is going to open the bottle of liquor she has brought and he pours her a glass. She says that he can have one too and he tells her that he is supposed to write an essay. She laughs and he pours another, giving one to her and asking wheres she wants her case. She asks him to put it in the closet and tells him she cannot stand the sight of an unpacked suitcase because it reminds her of lonely salesman. He sits next to her on the bed and she tells him that she thought on the train that she cannot get too sad because she has him no matter what. Jimmy knocks his glass against hers, kisses her on the forehead and tells her that he loves her. She pats his knee and asks what they are going to do for fun, describing them both as college kids. Jimmy watches from a balcony as the mixer guests arrive. He spots Angela and calls to her, saying that he thought she would not come. She meets him halfway up the stairs and says that her aunt’s demands that she clean out the stove changed her mind. She asks him how she looks and he tells her she looks as though she is from Vermont. She smiles and he gives her a corsage. They kiss and she asks if his mother has left. Jimmy’s response is interrupted by Gillian saying that she could not leave without meeting Angela. Jimmy makes introductions and Gillian says they are going to kiss. Angela agrees and Gillian kisses her and takes her hands, saying she needs to “drink her in”. She looks her over, says that Angela looks simple and restrained and that she approves. Angela compliments Gillian’s outfit and Gillian claims that she never knows what to wear. Gillian reminds Jimmy of the corsage and he tucks it into the waistband of Angela’s skirt. Gillian remarks that it is hard to raise a gentleman. Later, Jimmy watches from across the room as Gillian flirts with his professor, Mr Pearson. Jimmy drinks alone in the corridor, the Princeton college motto “Dei sub numine viget” (Latin, meaning Under God's power she flourishes) is engraved on a stone behind him. Angela finds him there and asks if he is coming back inside. He says that he was just getting some air. Gillian runs out of a stairwell, her dress torn from one shoulder. Jimmy asks what happened and she says that she thought they were just flirting. Pearson emerges after her and lights a cigarette. Jimmy hands his jacket and hip flask to Angela and approaches Pearson. Pearson sits down on the steps and greets Jimmy. Jimmy asks what Pearson did to his mother. Pearson struggles to believe Gillian is Jimmy’s mother given their closeness in age and describes Jimmy’s life as Jacobean. Jimmy insists that Pearson stand-up, dismissing his warnings. Pearson admonishes Jimmy not to do anything stupid and offers to deliver a convincing apology. Jimmy punches him in the face, bloodying his nose and knocking him back onto the steps. Pearson offers to pretend the incident did not happen if Jimmy walks away. Jimmy tells him that it is happening and punches him repeatedly. Angela is horrified while Gillian is thrilled. Jimmy helps a staggering Gillian back to her room at the boarding house. She stops him from turning on the light. He takes a swig from the bottle he opened earlier, emptying it. She notices blood on his shirt and insists he take it off so that she can rinse it. She asks how badly he hurt Pearson and he says that it was enough to get him expelled. She reassures him that Nucky will fix the problem. He wonders why she came and she tells him that she is “the loneliest person on Earth.” She asks him if he loves Angela and he says he does not know then briefly admits that he does not before reverting to uncertainty. She asks him to promise that he will not do anything stupid. He avoids the request by saying they need to get her shoes off and get her into bed. She sits on the chest at the foot of the bed and undoes her suspenders as he helps her remove her shoes. She tumbles off the side of the chest and he catches her. He undoes the back of her dress and she becomes playful when he orders her to raise her arms. Now in her underwear she moves towards the bed and stumbles again. He wraps his arms around her to steady her and she says she hates him seeing her like this. He tells her that she won’t remember in the morning. They tumble into bed together as she tells him that she always remembers everything, no matter what. He asks if she is alright and she says that the room is spinning. He tells her to let herself breathe as he adjusts the covers. She rubs his shoulder and tells him that he knows how to take care of her. He says he has been doing it for long enough and she tells him that when he was little she used to lie in bed, curled up with him. She says that she used to pretend that there was no-one else in the world but them. A train passes and he says goodnight and goes to kiss her forehead. She tilts her head upward and kisses her son open mouthed. She tells him that there is nothing wrong with any of it as she holds her to him. The noise of the train continues as the mother and son have sex. The next day Angela is gone and Jimmy drops out of college and enlists in the US Army. On July 26, 1921 Gillian watches from the window at Jimmy’s beach house as ambulance men load the bodies of Angela and Louise onto their vehicle. A Sheriff's Deputy questions her about Jimmy, asking where he was at the time of the murders. Gillian says that Jimmy is away on business but refuses to clarify the nature of that business. She wonders why Eli is not there as she specifically requested him. She tells the Deputy to talk to Eli and he says that he is trying to get the facts straight. Gillian tells him the facts; Angela was having sex with a woman, noting that it was unlikely to be the first time, when an intruder broke in and killed them both. Gillian walks past the deputy into the lounge where Richard Harrow is sat. The deputy wonders if Harrow is an associate of Jimmy and asks him if he knows where Jimmy is. Gillian stops Harrow from speaking and tells the Deputy that he is a simpleton, asking Harrow to confirm this. The Deputy leaves, telling them he will let them know when the body can be claimed. Gillian thanks him for his sympathy and, once he is gone, asks if Harrow was able to reach Jimmy. He says that Jimmy did not answer the phone and Gillian says that Jimmy needs to come home to stop people from getting the wrong idea. Harrow excuses himself and goes back to the bedroom where the bodies were found. Later, Gillian speaks to Jimmy on the phone, he is intoxicated and holed up in his Princeton hotel room. She urges him to come home to his son and business in order to show that he has nothing to hide. The next day Jimmy is back at The Commodore's house in Atlantic City, pallid and sweaty. He listens as his mother plans how to handle Angela’s murder while she is doing embroidery. She talks of arranging a funeral for appearance's sake. She notes that there will be few mourners given Angela’s narrow circle. She tells Jimmy that Louise was from out of town and that the police are trying to reach her relatives, saying that Louise is not their concern. She says that they need to consider Tommy and reveals that she has told him that his mother went away to paint for a few days. She suggests telling Tommy that Angela went to live with her friends in Paris and wanted him to stay with them. She brazenly claims that Tommy will forget Angela in a month. Jimmy rushes across the room and chokes Gillian, repeating over and over that he will remember. She claws at his chest and gasps for breath. His father stabs him in the shoulder with an antique spear. Jimmy falls to the floor and Gillian sucks in air. The Commodore pulls back the spear and Jimmy flips over and grabs it as his father tries to drive it into his chest. They grapple with the weapon and Jimmy gets to his feet before being pushed back against the wall. The Commodore attempts to choke Jimmy with the weapon as Gillian screams no from her seat. Jimmy stabs his father in the abdomen with his trench knife. The Commodore drops the spear and stumbles backwards, the blade still in place. Gillian shouts at Jimmy to finish it after he rips the weapon free. Jimmy stabs his father in the chest and he collapses to the floor, twitching. Jimmy limps into the next room and then drops to the ground, unconscious. Later, Jimmy awakens when the clock chimes to find his left arm and chest bandaged and Harrow cleaning the crime scene, Gillian is not there. Later Gillian brings Tommy downstairs to see Jimmy. She reassures Tommy that Jimmy has not gone anywhere. Tommy tells Jimmy that he has had a bad dream and Jimmy says that he did too but that everything will be fine. Tommy asks for his mother and Gillian says that she is there and not to worry. Gillian tells Jimmy that he did not mean what he did and that they will not mention it again. She says things will get better and hopes that he can see that. She picks Tommy up and takes him upstairs. Jimmy stares up at her as she tells him one day soon his son will no longer be a little boy and that it happens just like that. She says that she will put Tommy to bed. To the Lost Jimmy and Gillian meet with Leander Cephas Whitlock in The Commodore’s study to discuss his estate. Jimmy notes that the death certificate records his death as an accident and Whitlock tells him that it was costly to get it to read this way. Gillian is surprised when Whitlock produces The Commodore’s will. Whitlock says that it was written in 1914 and has not been revised. The document leaves the bulk of his estate to Louanne Pratt, The Commodore’s former housemaid who was dismissed for trying to poison him with arsenic. Jimmy asks Whitlock what would happen if there was no will and learns that he would inherit the estate as the next of kin. Jimmy asks if it would pass from him to his son and Whitlock confirms this. Jimmy tears up the will and throws it on the ground. Langston announces that Jimmy’s guests have arrived. Gillian begins to give him advice and he cuts her off. She asserts that she has been trying to help him and he says that he knows. Interim Atlantic County Treasurer Jim Neary, Alderman Al Boyd and chief clerk of the fourth ward Paddy Ryan file into the room as Gillian exits, helping themselves to drinks. Jimmy fails to convince his co-conspirators to implicate Eli instead of Nucky. He has Harrow murder Jim Neary on the eve of the trial. They force Neary to write a statement implicating Eli at gunpoint before staging his death as a suicide. Gillian lights a cigarette on the beach just outside of Atlantic City. Jimmy shows Tommy to a stand with ponies and encourages his son to befriend one of the animals. The wrangler brings Tommy a slice of apple to feed to the pony. Jimmy shows him how to hold his palm flat for the pony and watches as the mount takes it. He wonders if his son noticed how wet the pony’s mouth was and then encourages him to pet it. The wrangler notes that Tommy is a gentle little one. Jimmy tells Tommy that he used to bivouac on the beech alone in his childhood. Tommy asks if he can do the same and Jimmy says that he can. He lifts Tommy into the saddle and instructs him how to stay in the saddle. The wrangler brings two hats and asks if Tommy is a cowboy or a soldier. True to his roots Tommy selects the latter. The wrangler unties the animal and leads Tommy away, saying that Jimmy can pay him afterwards. Jimmy stares back at Gillian who waves back at him. He turns back to watch his son and lights a cigarette. Jimmy and Harrow share drinks and war stories in The Commodores home as Gillian plays with Tommy in the next room. Gillian relates that his squad mate Radcliffe amused them by altering the words to “Over There”. Richard says that when he was working as a solitary sniper for days on end he would return to the camp, find his brothers in arms joking and would feel at home. Jimmy says that none of them were meant to be there. Harrow says that they were anyway and then asks if they are really still there. Jimmy says that it is time to come home. Harrow asks how and Jimmy says that he does not know but asks Harrow to promise that he will try. The phone rings and Jimmy limps over to answer it, humming the tune to “Over There”. It is Nucky; he tells Jimmy that he has located Manny through Doyle and arranged to meet him in one hour at the war memorial. Jimmy says that he will be there. Harrow asks who it was, learns the details and offers to accompany Jimmy. Jimmy tells him that it will be OK. Harrow then offers to take care of it for Jimmy and Jimmy says that he must do it himself. The record stops playing and Jimmy rubs his jaw before striding out into the storm. Gillian hears the door close and asks Harrow if Jimmy has gone out. Harrow says that there was something he has to do and Gillian puts her hand to her mouth. She tells Tommy that it is time for bed and then notices that he is wearing Jimmy’s dog tags. Tommy says that they are used for identification and she confirms that he got them from Jimmy. Harrow swallows a surge of emotion and Gillian tucks the tags back into Tommy’s pyjamas. She tells her grandson that he will be a big man in the city one day, just like his father. Jimmy is murdered by Nucky at the Atlantic City War Memorial. See also *Gillian Darmody Season 1 *Gillian Darmody Season 3 *Season 2 References Season 2 Category:Season 2 Character Breakdowns